Various printers have been used as an output device of computers. A printer is one-to-one connected with a computer (hereafter expressed as ‘locally connected’) by means of a preset cable, such as a two-way parallel interface, and receives data from the computer to execute printing. With the penetration of LANs (local area networks), it becomes popular that multiple computers connecting with a network share one or multiple printers connecting with the network.
Another proposed technique utilizes a protocol called IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) to allow for printing among arbitrary clients and printing devices connected to the Internet. The output destination of printing is, however, limited to printing devices having known URIs (Uniform Resource Indicators). Namely simple application of only the IPP does not attain a highly convenient printing system that can freely select the output destination on the network.
In any of the prior art printing systems, the connection state of the printer with the computer is generally set in advance. Namely the location of printing is typically fixed for each owner of the computer.
The recent advancement of the information infrastructure, such as the Internet, and the improved portability of terminals like laptops and cellular phones, which are used to access the information infrastructure, allow for access to information at any locations. Under such circumstances, development of the new technique has been highly demanded, which enables the user to freely select an output destination for printing on a network. For example, one requirement is to utilize a nearest printing device for printing immediately after acquisition of information. It is also desired that print jobs are readily executable from personal digital assistances and other portable terminals.
There are two important issues on printing via the network.
The first issue regards specification of an output destination for printing. There are a large number of available output destinations for printing on the network. One applicable method gives a client a list of available output destinations and requests the client to select a desired output destination from the list. This method, however, requires relatively troublesome operations and significantly lowers the convenience. Another applicable method retrieves an appropriate printing device. This method also requires input of retrieval conditions and other relatively troublesome operations. Such complicated operations are not negligible in the case of executing print jobs from portable terminals.
The second issue regards a print timing. At the time of output of a print job, the user may not be geographically close to a printing device connecting with the network. The printing device specified as the output destination may not be kept in a printable status. Print jobs are to be executed in the state that allows the user to receive resulting prints. The issue of the print timing is especially important when a certain user transmits a print job to another user by utilizing a printing system via a network, that is, in the case where the printing system via the network is used as the substitute of facsimile.
These problems are not restricted to the printing system, but are commonly found in systems of outputting video data, document data, and audio data via a network.